> If they would support the DLL interface any configuration should work. But
> if they were to borrow code from SANE they would make StarOffice a GPL
> product. (Not that I would mind. But they propably will.)
Not true if they're just using SANE to provide backends for a proprietary
SANE frontend. The standard SANE boilerplate includes an explicit
exemption for the backends when linked statically into a proprietary
application.
I think this is (for now) a good decision, because the SANE backends mostly
work with low-level hardware driver stuff. In a differently structured
operating system, their functionality might well be an OS driver module.
So we have no reason to deny this functionality to proprietary software
developers.
NB Although *linking* the backends to proprietary software is allowed, the
GPL remains in force in every other way. If they find a HP bug and fix it
in their static binary, they must provide source code for the fixed HP
backend in order to be permitted to distribute it. More likely they'll
choose to send the HP developer a fix, and ask that he integrate it...
Nick. IANAL
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